The Love Of A Lonely Hunter
by Salvatore Shan NW
Summary: I've finally found him... and I'll never let him go. Rashel's found Quinn and she's keeping him. This is what they get up to after the events of book five...


Reluctantly, the two dragged themselves along the weed-strewn path – the open window next door revealing the sound of a baby crying.

"And where have you been?" The blonde blocking the front door barked, narrowed eyes glaring in her foster-daughter's direction, who was standing blackened and tattered as she shut the gate behind a guy dressed all in black. _She had a boyfriend?_ The girl who couldn't bring herself to love her foster-mother – love anything except the night – had a guy?

"You disappear for God knows how many days, and then prance back here with a boyfriend? What am I supposed to think?"

"Mai…" the dark-haired girl sighed, holding up a hand to show she wasn't listening. The boy behind her shifted uncomfortably, looked down at his clothes and noted that they were still covered in soot. He made a mental note to wash them ASAP. He hadn't thought of changing last night. They were both way too tired to care about changing. And it had taken a long time to drop Timmy and Nyala off at the nearest Daybreak outpost…

"Hello? Earth to Rashel? You're supposed to give me an answer!" Mai cried, relaxing her guard. Rashel stormed up the path, trailing a filthy-looking guy behind her. He looked like he'd fallen down a chimney.

"Rashel, you are _not_ coming in here till you give me some answers," Mai folded her arms. "I know that I let you go out often, and one night out is okay – but not even calling? Not telling me where you went? I was worried, Rashel! I thought-"

"Uh, it's my fault." The dark-haired boy said, grimacing apologetically as the pair came to a stop on the porch. Mai could see, even though his face was blackened, that he was quite handsome. In fact… not 'quite'… _very_. "She was with me." He sent her a flirtatious and apologetic glance as if to say 'sorry' and then looked down at his feet, trying hard to hide a smile.

Mai hesitated for an instant, then frowned. "And who are you?"

"Quinn. Or, uhm…" the boy turned to look at Rashel, bit his lip and looked back at Mai. "_John_. John Quinn."

Mai's eyes fell on Rashel. "You could have told me you were with a boy," she narrowed her eyes, but her expression had softened. "It's not illegal. And I trust-"

Rashel's face went pale, then she blushed furiously and almost snapped. "Yes, well, thanks Mai…. Can we come in?"

Mai stared at her for an instant longer and then shrugged, dropping her hand and turning back into the hall. "I'll take it you want a bath, John." She smiled. "You look like… well," she wrinkled her nose up and then the cogs in her mind ticked it over. Rashel's clothes looked burnt… "Were you two in a fire?" she cried, as Rashel shut the front door.

Rashel's body tensed up, then she let out a laugh that was almost too hysterical. "No, Mai, it's just, uh…"

"She pushed me in some soot," Quinn laughed, rubbing the back of his head, grinning. "It was funny at the time, but uh…" he looked down at himself, eyes glaring at what no one but he could see. _The past._

Mai shot Rashel an evil glare, then told Quinn where the bathroom was. As he left, he had the pleasure of hearing Mai drilling Rashel with questions about 'whether or not they used protection'. He sniggered, and opened the bathroom door – whereas Rashel could only lie about everything and nod.

She sent an angry glare upstairs, batting away Mai's further questions. As soon as Quinn got out of that bath she'd get him _good_.

&

"What's the idea? You tell my foster-mother that we _slept_ together?" Rashel screamed, pounding her hand on the bathroom door when Mai had gone out shopping. To her surprise, the door slid open at the first strike and swung backwards dangerously. She gasped and shut her eyes, only to hear quiet laughter.

"I'm decent," Quinn smiled, brushing past her. Rashel opened one eye, then the other. He was dripping wet, hair plastered to his forehead, towel dropping around his waist… Rashel shut her eyes and bit down on her tongue to stop herself from talking.

" –And anyway," he continued, "I didn't. I said 'you were with me' – there's a difference." He seemed quite happy and less serious, at least his face was clean now.

Rashel frowned. "You could've said something else… something-"

"Something more believable? That I kidnapped twenty-four girls, took them to an island where vampires were throwing a party, met you and fell absolutely in love with you, got involved in a fire and killed my ex-fiancé's father?" he was ticking it off on his fingers as he went, face growing even more stormy. He snorted, finally and held onto his towel with one hand while combing his hair through with the other.

"Yeah right," he finally murmured, looking around the room thoughtfully. He held up his arms. "Where am I supposed to go?" then he looked down at his towel and with reflexes only a vampire could master, grabbed it before he made Rashel blush even more.

Rashel turned away, emotions running riot. "You might as well come in here," she crossed the hallway and opened her bedroom door. The light was off and it almost frightened her how dark it was. She switched on the light and wondered whether he would be impressed or not. _Most definitely not._

Turning around to grab his clothes from the bathroom, he turned back and stepped in her room, grinning from ear-to-ear, then stopped suddenly and almost threw up. Rashel had never felt so ashamed.

"C-Come in," she said weakly, grabbing a specific poster off the wall before it caught her soulmate's eye. Too late. He'd already seen. Quinn snatched it out of her hands and stared down at the piece of paper. It was a _Lancers_ hit list.

"Hmm… hunters most wanted," he looked up at her, face white – even though he didn't realise, "Oh, and look who's number one!" he exclaimed. Rashel snapped it back and ripped it up into tiny peaces, shoulders shaking uncontrollably. Either she was about to scream or she was about to cry.

Quinn stepped farther into her room. "And I _love_ the colour. Blood red. And the painting-"

"I'm sorry, okay? We've both done wrong, Quinn, so don't get on at me now." Rashel turned furiously, pointing her finger at him. "I'm getting rid of it, okay? You should know that that doesn't matter anymore." Quinn nodded thoughtfully at the wall, one hand wrapped around his chin in thought.

Painted on one of the walls was a vampire being staked. Obviously done by Rashel herself. The signature gave it away. Quinn felt cold again. He'd thought _that_ feeling would never sweep over him again.

"I…" he began, then looked down at his feet. "I can't stay here tonight, Rash." He whispered, voice hoarse. Rashel opened her mouth then looked down, too, and felt her bottom lip wobble.

"I'm… _sorry_," she whimpered. Quinn turned to her, eyes wet. Then they were hugging each other, or rather – Rashel was hugging Quinn (his hands were still wrapped around his towel).

"You're right. We've both done wrong," he said into her hair, resting his chin on her shoulder. Even though he wasn't holding her back, the hug was warm on both sides. Rashel pulled away and wiped her dry eyes, panicking in case she really _did_ cry. She didn't feel at home in this room anymore.

She turned around, eyes shut, when Quinn got changed. When he was done, he looked down at himself, then in the mirror on Rashel's wall, brushing some soot off of himself. His clothes were still dirty.

"How do I look?" he asked, his back to her. Rashel turned around on cue, smiled tightly and wrapped her arms around his waist, checking his reflection out in the mirror. "Nice," she told him, then kissed him on the cheek. Pleasant shivers ran up both of their spines… not _exactly _lightning bolts. A pink haze was descending around them, turning purple as it engulfed them.

Soulmates… 

"I love you," Quinn whispered. Here. Here in this place, he wasn't Quinn to Rashel. He was John. And he was hers. "I love you, too." Rashel replied, wondering where they were, what they were doing – how it had happened.

Like the aurora borealis, they were weaving in and out of the stars, changing colours and spinning… spinning through eternity together. Quinn's lips were on her own… _he must be facing me_, Rashel realised. Intertwining together, flowing like water, mixing… joining…

"Rashel…"

"John…" Both had never felt so relaxed before. Nothing was there to stop them. There wasn't a room of seven made-vampires about to exhaust twenty-four girls. No Hunter. No Lily. No Ivan. Nothing. Nothing was going to stop this now. Nothing could remove their happiness.

Rashel felt something soft beneath her. Her mattress. _Her bed_. She felt like she was floating on a bed of air… way up in the clouds… Quinn was on top of her, kissing her neck.

Neither needed to speak. Neither needed anything except the thunderous love burning around them like steam, controlling their minds… 'Where are we?' was no longer a thought in either head, instead it was one word. One word that mattered to both as if it were oxygen. _Soulmates_.

Rashel's shirt peeled off. She didn't know how. It sort of just… slipped. Was it _her_ hands? _Quinn's_? Or did it just disappear? She was too delirious to know. But her hands _did_ move. They were sliding up Quinn's shirt, getting dirty and black in the process. _So if I'm taking his shirt off, he must be undoing mine._

Quinn was going away. "John-?" Rashel tried to reach out. He was stepping away, pulling off of her. "Quinn?" No. He wasn't leaving her. He was carrying her away with him. He was pulling the sheets off of the bed. He was putting her on the mattress – clambering in after her.

Are we still kissing? Rashel wondered. She didn't think so. Now Quinn was on top of her again and the sheets were in place.

_Rashel…_

_John…_

_Don't ever leave me… _Quinn whispered.

_I won't, _Rashel vowed, nodding silently.

Then they both sighed. And the rest was a blur.


End file.
